Above & Below

Kurama would smile back at the children before ordering the special and some tea while enjoying the amiable ambiance.

Effort eyes the children, then sighs a bit.  She points at the candle in the center of their table, and waits until the girl's eyes follow it.  Then, with a rapid series of finger movements, she casts thaumaturgy, causing the flame to turn at first a bright blue, then a lively green, and finally a sparkling pink, before returning to normal.  She doesn't bother to look and see what the girl's reaction is, though a slight smile tugs at the corner of her lips.

Turning to Kurama, she says, "That tattoo is the most interesting thing I've seen on you yet.  How did you get that?  Is it arcane or mystical in nature?" she asks.

"I've no idea," he replies in between sips of tea, "It's partially why I came to Gorta.  I was near the epicenter of the calamity that destroyed my home and when I awoke in the rubble afterwards, I had this scar and tattoo burned onto my body.  I also gained new... abilities, if you can call it that, which I still do not completely understand but it seems to have some effect on my Ki and physical abilities.  Hopefully whatever your friend is doing might help shed some light on what happened to me." Then completely changing the subject out of nowhere, "The food here is quite good, I'm glad we decided to try a new place before departing." 

Pip excitedly chugs down an ale and starts diving into his dinner. "Scars...Pip has scars," he looks over at Kurama. "Never got a tattoo out of thin air though. Strange! I like it."

Burik looks solemn, as always. "If our last venture into the White Wind Mountains was any indication, there's probably more going on wherever your friend is than we might imagine." He takes a long, deliberate drink out of his stein. 

I hope so, says Brask to Burik.  The more there is going on, the more chance there is for some action. 

To Kurama:  Cool tattoo.  Probably some god did it.  Maybe it's like a vengeance thing, he says hopefully.  Like the tattoo will help you find those responsible so we can... err, that is, so you can kill them.  That would be good. 

Brask also gets properly stuck in on his food - how is it?

"I don't doubt it," Effort says, growing solemn despite the good food and general atmosphere.  "The cultists are targeting him specifically.  That means he wields a power that they want to use for themselves... and also that he may have already fallen victim to them.  If they're weaponizing their choice arcanists, then I suspect it will be much the same as it was with Murmur:  something like a rescue operation.  Or perhaps defense, if he was clever enough to avoid being captured."  

She eats her food quietly, but the telltale twitching of her tail shows Effort's worry.

The food is excellent - probably some of the best most of you have had. Whether or not your tastes can tell the difference between this and a bowl of stew at the lowliest inn is another matter.

When he finishes, Burik stands up and nods to you all. "I imagine we're going to be pushing hard for the next few days to get to the mountains. I'm going to turn in. See you all in the morning."

Pip continues to eat and drink, excitedly looking around the room. He laughs, nods, and smiles to folks even when they aren't looking in his direction. 

Worried about the fate of her friend, Promise, Effort doesn't fully appreciate the quality of her rather pricey meal.  She does appreciate it enough, however, to wrap as much of the bread as she can in a cloth and stow it in her pack, to bring along as a snack while on the road.   "I shall follow Burik's example and rest for the evening... it's going to be an even more difficult hike than the last one through the mountains," she guesses.  Patting Pip on the shoulder, she warns him:  "Don't stay up too late.  You'll need to gather your energy for the journey, so rest in comfort while you can.  Brask has the constitution of an ox.  Or rather a bull, I suppose.  He may not realize that you're getting tired, so leave on your own if you need to."

Bidding the others good night, Effort retires to her room.

Brask buys one more round of drinks for himself, Kurama and Pip.  He also looks around at the other patrons of the restaurant - how are they responding to the group?  

Assuming you've been there for awhile, the general feel of the restaurant has gone from older locals and families to a younger crowd. A few groups of travelers come in over the course of the evening. One human, one dwarven, and one a mix of an elf and two halflings. The grittier element of the city seems absent here, probably choosing to frequent establishments in other neighborhoods - closer to the docks, perhaps. Nobody seems to pay you much mind, other than giving the table the occasional glance (this is if you're behaving yourself, of course). The woman bringing your drinks hasn't said or indicated any issue either. 

Pip takes a big of swig of his next drink, slams it on the table, and wipes his sudsy chin with his forearm. "Delicious stuff, this is. Only ever drank something called brown wine before. Got used to it...not as good."

Heh.  Yeah, it's amazing what we get used to, if we have to.  This stuff is good enough.  I've had better, I've certainly had worse.  Best enjoy it - we won't find much up in the mountains. 

In due course, Brask also heads to his room after making sure Pip has also turned in.

Kurama's been enjoying the evening well enough content to enjoy the meal around company he now considers friends, the first people he's seen in that way since he ventured off alone.  After finishing the drink Brask ordered for him, he'll also excuse himself for the night and make his way back to the inn (though he will give some friendly advice to Pip to be careful about mixing beer and tea on his way out).  On his walk back, his mind drifts to his past life and to those he was once closest to before his mood darkened as they shifted to memories of Him.  Brask was right, Kurama promises himself as he lightly touches the tattoo on his arm, this will somehow bring me the answers, and vengeance, that I seek; I'll make sure that it does. 

The morning brings a brisk wind from the north, and by the time you have the city at your backs, a cold rain is coming down. It's fairly unpleasant, and it puts a chill into your bones. By early afternoon, you find yourselves climbing up and down small hills and valleys that dot the landscape all the way between the coast and the mountains. When the rain finally passes, and only gray clouds remain overhead, you find yourselves at the top of one of these hills. Skirting around it to the right, a stream seems to run deeper into the woods. To the left, some level forest dotted with scorched trees.  

Pip looks around at the group. "Which way now?"

(Could a survival check be used to help determine how traversable each path might be?)

(Survival: 13)

Sure - a 16 will tell you that the hill you're climbing right now gets steep and narrow and runs along a high crest for at least a few miles. It looks unnecessary and probably very cold hiking along the top. The path to the right brings you down a steep slope - nothing treacherous - and meets with a moderately sized stream that bends into a deeper patch of woods. The path to the left keeps you on level ground. The trees are thinner, and in the distance you can see scorched trunks that would seem to signal that a wildlife had burned part of the forest. You don't smell any smoke, though, so this wasn't a particularly recent fire. At least not within the past few days. 

Kurama takes a moment to survey the various paths in front of them, "I believe it would be best to get off our current path and head to the right towards that stream over there," he comments pointing in that general direction.  "The path to the left might have less protection from the elements with many of the trees having recently burned down." 

"That seems wise," Effort agrees, deferring to Kurama's judgement.  "Besides, we could always do with a source of fresh water during our travels."  She recalls Cadmael from the pocket plane, and sends him ahead to scout.

Cadmael stealth: 8
Cadmael perception: 16

Cadmael streams above the treetops gracefully, ducking below the canopy when he gets to the bottom of the hill. Effort can see how pristine the stream seems to be, with lush greenery all around it. As Cadmael loops around the first bend, there is a pair of wild boar feeding at the edge of the water. They don't look up - either not seeing the owl or not caring. Cadmael continues further down and doesn't see anything out of the ordinary. After about a mile, he loops back around, emerging above the treeline and soaring back to Effort's shoulder. 

"Was he able to see anything useful?"  Kurama ask Effort.

"Boars," Effort says after a moment.  "They're feasting on something at the edge of the water.  I'd leave them be, unless you want to find out what, exactly, they're snacking on.  In my experience interrupting any wild creature while it is trying to have a meal can make it react quite poorly to your presence, however," she points out.  "Otherwise, it looks to be a peaceful hike."